Chapter 4 — Turning the Tables

I lowered my head and stayed silent.

With Pei Lang, I could fight back and argue.

But this was a princess. I had to weigh every word.

When I said nothing, she planted her foot on my kneeling leg.

"These Shu-brocade shoes are one of only three pairs in the palace this year. They've got a little dirty. I'll borrow your clothes to wipe them."

"Consider it an honor."

I clenched my teeth and kept my head bowed, hiding the hatred in my eyes.

"It is my good fortune."

Perhaps my refusal to lose my temper bored her.

"How dull. I don't know what Brother Pei ever saw in you!"

Then she turned toward the meditation rooms in the rear courtyard.

Still kneeling, I stared at the paving stones before me.

And thought quietly.

It seemed many plans would have to move faster.

Only once everyone had left did I rise.

The abbot looked at me with pity.

"Benefactor Xie, the Buddha teaches eight sufferings in life: meeting those we hate, parting from those we love, seeking what we cannot obtain."

"What you've endured today is part of your cultivation."

"But the Buddha also teaches that cause and effect never fail. As you sow, so shall you reap. What you bear today will have its answer."

I nodded.

Good would be rewarded. Evil would meet its reckoning.

Third Princess, yours was coming.

This had been a quiet Buddhist sanctuary.

Suddenly, a scream rang from a meditation room in the rear courtyard.

I followed the crowd. The door stood wide open. A noblewoman at the entrance covered her mouth in horror.

Inside, two naked bodies were entwined.

The Third Princess and Pei Lang.

Her gaze was dazed. Only at the cries from outside did she come to herself, looking around in panic as though waking from a dream.

"Don't look! Get out! All of you!"

"Impossible… impossible…"

The noblewomen dared not say anything harsh, but their scornful looks seemed ready to flay her.

Some who knew of my connection to Pei Lang turned toward me.

I merely lowered my eyes and said nothing.

My part in it remained hidden.

I'd sent word to Pei Lang that the princess was at the temple and longed to see him.

He'd found a way to slip out.

On the road up the mountain, my people had deliberately bumped into him and left a secret drug on his person.

It readily aroused desire. What followed had happened as easily as water flowing downstream.

Tears covered the princess's face as she shouted,

"Get out! Stop looking, or I'll gouge out your eyes!"

She was still a princess, after all. The guests exchanged looks and withdrew.

I left with them.

Too many people had seen it today.

This time, there would be no hiding the news.

The Emperor was furious. But with the princess's chastity gone, he could only marry her to Pei Lang.

After this, she lost his favor entirely.

She strongly suspected me.

Without evidence, however, she could do nothing.

Besides, I'd been so meek and obedient throughout that her suspicions eased somewhat.

Their wedding was very discreet.

On their wedding night, comments appeared again.

[What's wrong with the male lead? Why can't he perform? Wasn't he supposed to be so strong?]

[Don't. The plot's a mess. He's tried several times and still can't. Our girl can't stand him.]

[She asked him to try again and his face went green, hahaha.]

They didn't know.

This was the secret drug Hong Jingxing had found.

It could stimulate desire, but its side effects were severe.

Men who used it were very likely to become impotent.

Afterward, the princess and Pei Lang's life became constant turmoil.

They blamed each other daily. Their old tenderness had vanished.

Doctor after doctor visited the princess's residence, but Pei Lang never recovered.

In endless disappointment, she began keeping male favorites.

The comments kept telling me what happened next.

[Our girl's looking for male favorites now. This is bad! The male lead's heartbroken!]

[If he can't… is she supposed to live like a widow forever?]

[Build a harem! Build a harem!]

[It's already a pot of porridge. Hurry and eat it while it's hot!]

[Am I the only one who pities him? She hates everything about him now and hits and scolds him every day. Why do I feel he's about to go twisted?]

All that time, I stayed at the temple.

Even if they wanted to cause trouble for me, they couldn't get to me.

Of course, I'd never intended to stand by and watch them live happily in love.

Even without the drug, I would have found a way to stir up trouble between them.

As things stood, I could only marvel that their love hadn't been so unbreakable after all.

How little time it had taken to turn them into enemies.

Hong Jingxing seized the opportunity to propose to the Pei family.

Before, fear of the Third Princess had kept him silent.

Now the Peis had left a terrible impression on the Emperor.

And the princess no longer seemed to care about Pei Lang.

With their family in decline, Hong Jingxing's "blindness" suddenly cleared. He brought a meager set of betrothal gifts to their door.

Pei Wanzhi wept and made a scene, refusing to marry.

He waved his fan and sneered.

"Do you think you're still a chaste noblewoman?"

"You've been with me. Naturally, you're mine!"

Then he recited the marks on her body in precise detail.

She fainted from shame on the spot.

Madam Pei tried to hold the situation together, her face ghastly and her whole body shaking with rage.

In the end, the family had to grit their teeth and marry her to him.

Naturally, I heard all this from Hong Jingxing's page.

After listening, I quietly drank a cup of tea.

"Our cooperation ends here."

His household would certainly be lively from now on.

A fool and a lecher, put together to torment each other.

That was fine.

Three years passed.

The comments appeared less and less often.

After Pei Wanzhi entered Hong Jingxing's household, she proved no match for the women around him.

Her mother-in-law repeatedly oppressed her. She grew increasingly haggard.

She once wrote to me, saying she regretted not listening to me before.

I thought it was nonsense.

I burned every letter.

Later, perhaps worn down by too much torment, she grew resentful. One night, she cut off Hong Jingxing's most precious possession.

Hearing that, I actually felt some admiration.

He suffered terribly and never went out again.

To protect her, the Peis paid considerable compensation in gold, silver, and land.

Now she was confined in the rear courtyard. I didn't know whether she was alive or dead.

On the day I came down the mountain, a gaunt figure suddenly rushed in front of my conveyance.

Startled, the driver hastily reined in the horses.

I looked closely.

Pei Lang.

Once so handsome and distinguished, he was now so fallen that he looked like a beggar.

He tried to rush toward me, but the guards stopped him.

His eyes were bloodshot. Every word seemed wrung from him.

"Xiao'er, I regret it! I regret it!"

"I was wrong!"

"You don't know how badly the princess treats me. She's always enjoying herself with so many men. I couldn't bear it. In anger, I stabbed her. She's still unconscious. I'm so frightened…"

"For the sake of what we once had, can you help me…? This time, I'll treat you well!"

I was truly astonished.

They really were brother and sister.

Pei Wanzhi had cut off Hong Jingxing's most important part. Pei Lang had stabbed a princess.

The Pei ancestors must be positively bursting with pride.

I gave the guards a look.

They immediately seized him.

He stared at me, bewildered.

"What… what do you mean?"

I clapped my hands and laughed.

"Whatever there was between us ended when you framed me."

"You stabbed a princess. Naturally, I must arrest you and hand you over to His Majesty!"

He struggled like a captured dog.

"Xie Xiao, how can you do this to me? Have you forgotten what we shared?"

"I trusted you! That's why I came! You can't give me to the Emperor!"

Finding him noisy, I told the guards to take him away.

No one was allowed to stand between me and a chance to earn credit!

I redirected the carriage straight to the palace and handed Pei Lang over to the Emperor.

Three years had passed. Whatever dissatisfaction the Emperor and Empress had felt toward me had faded considerably.

Besides, I'd personally brought them the man who'd harmed the princess.

The Emperor praised me himself.

"Young lady of the Xie family, three years of quiet cultivation have indeed forged a chivalrous heart."

"Pei Lang stabbed a princess. His crime is unforgivable. You have earned merit by capturing the culprit. I acknowledge it."

"The entire Xie family is loyal and righteous. I am well pleased."

With those precious imperial words, my days ahead would be much easier.

Only Pei Lang kept looking at me with wounded eyes.

As though he were the one betrayed.

When I returned home, my parents hurried out to welcome me.

Father stroked his beard and asked whether I'd suffered.

Mother immediately ordered all my favorite dishes.

My brother had grown up too. He was doing well in his studies and said he would support me in future.

As I looked at the family who loved me, the darkness that had lingered in my heart for years finally began to lift.

A thousand sails had passed beyond the endless mountains.

I wasn't anyone's "vicious supporting girl."

I was my parents' daughter.

My brother's sister.

Myself.

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